PROMOTING GIAHS AND ENHANCING THE IDENTIFICATION OF GIAHS SITES IN AFRICA 

A five-day regional workshop will open in Arusha, Tanzania on 27 February to help identify and promote GIAHS sites in the African region. The FAO workshop will bring together over forty participants from 20 countries, and five NGO’s and research institutes in an effort to share knowledge, experiences and lessons learned by outstanding examples of GIAHS in Africa and Asia and to help establish regional partnership among all stakeholders.

The overall purpose of the workshop is to enhance the capacity of the participating countries to initiate, implement and monitor a GIAHS project. The workshop includes two days visit to the Tanzanian GIAHS sites (Shimbwe juu Agroforesty Heritage site and Massai Pastoralist Heritage Area). Participants will meet and learn from the local farmers, pastoralists and communities. They will witness examples of how Tanzanian have used traditional practices, reduced poverty, supported food security while conserving scarce resources. During the visits, the participants will learn how both sites have contributed to the sustainable development.

The workshop is organized with the support of the FAO South-South Cooperation Unit, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan and with the collaboration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (MALF) of Tanzania.